The Bank of Indonesia (BI) and the Bank of Thailand (BoT) on August 29 inaugurated the implementation of a QR code-based cross-border payment connection between the 2 countries.
BI Governor Perry Warjiyo said that with this initiative, people in Indonesia and Thailand will have the option to make use of the Thai QR code payment application and the Indonesian Quick Response Code (QRIS) standard when making payment transactions with merchants.
The system also supports tourism and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), he said, noting that it’s an try and encourage the digitization of cross-border payments.
In May 2022, the leaders of the central banks of Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines reiterated their commitments to attach the payment system.
Mr. Sugeng, Deputy Governor of BI, emphasized that “This initiative is a milestone of the Indonesian Payment System Plan 2025, especially in the field of retail payments. It connects cross-border payments by interconnecting the national QR codes of our two countries. An interesting aspect of this project is the use of direct quotation of local currency exchange rates provided by designated foreign exchange dealer (ACCD) banks within the local currency settlement (LCS) platform to improve transaction efficiency and thus reduce transaction costs. The significant expected result of this first cross-border payments project is not only to facilitate transactions in the tourism sector, but also to help SMEs in tourist areas. This project will also increase financial inclusion, including the digital economy and e-commerce transactions. This pilot, which BI calls an “industrial sandbox,” is on the right track to further expand cross-border payments within the region.”
Mr. Ronadol Numnonda, Deputy Governor of the BOT, stated that: “The Bank of Thailand highlights the importance of this cross-border payment connectivity as it has recently continuously undertaken similar initiatives in the region under the ASEAN Payment Connectivity initiative. We believe this cross-border QR payment will create a more secure, more efficient and cost-effective alternative to retail payments provided by the general public. This service will also help e-commerce companies in these difficult times and lay the foundations for the expected resumption of tourism and business flows. More importantly, our cross-border payment links with ASEAN’s largest country will be another key catalyst for transforming the way ASEAN citizens make payments abroad, thereby contributing to regional economic prosperity and digitalization.”
This project is made possible because of the cooperation of assorted stakeholders from each countries under the joint leadership of BI and BOT. These include the Indonesian Association of Payment Systems (ASPI), the Thai Bankers Association, 13 QRIS providers, RAJA (Rintis, Artajasa, Jalin and Alto) – 4 switching operators from Indonesia, National ITMX (NITMX) – a payment system operator from Thailand, in addition to ACCD banks, including Bank Central Asia (BCA), Bank Negara Indonesia (BNI) and Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI) from Indonesia, and Bangkok Bank (BBL), Bank of Ayudhya (Krungsri) and CIMB Thai Bank (CIMBT) from Thailand.
